Giorno: 3 Settembre 2023

(C) Reuters. Dub Kitty and Ben Joos, of Idaho and Nevada, walk through the mud at Burning Man after a night of dancing with friends in Black Rock City, in the Nevada desert, after a rainstorm turned the site into mud September 2, 2023. Trevor Hughes/USA TODAY NETWORK

By Rich McKay

(Reuters) -Nevada authorities on Sunday said they were investigating one death after a severe rainstorm left tens of thousands of revelers attending the annual Burning Man festival stranded in mud, and asked that they shelter in place and conserve food and water.

The Pershing County Sheriff’s Office in northern Nevada said in a statement that the death happened during a “rain event” on Saturday but did not provide details of the cause of death or the person’s identity.

“The family has been notified and the death is under investigation,” the sheriff’s office said.

Access to and from Black Rock City, the event site about 110 miles (180 km) north of Reno, was closed “for the remainder of the event,” organizers said in a statement on social media.

The Washoe County Sheriff’s Office said the entrance to Burning Man had been closed due to flooding and anyone trying to get in “will be turned away.”

More than 60,000 participants travel to and from the remote area in northwest Nevada every year, according to the event’s website, gathering in the temporary city to make art, dance, and enjoy community at a cost of $575 per person for a regular ticket. Local media reported there were around 73,000 “burners” in Black Rock City.

The counter-culture festival, which was scheduled to run from Aug. 27 until Sept. 4, will continue in a limited fashion, weather permitting, organizers said online.

The festival gets its name from its culminating event, the burning of a large wooden structure called the Man on the penultimate night. The fire will be attempted on Sunday night, organizers said.

Videos shared on social media showed festival-goers wading ankle deep in thick mud. The site is in Nevada’s Black Rock Desert, a large, flat, ancient lake bed known as a playa.

“Rain over the last 24 hours has created a situation that required a full stop of vehicle movement on the playa,” the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the agency that manages the land on which the event takes place, said in a statement on Saturday. “More rain is expected over the next few days and conditions are not expected to improve enough to allow vehicles to enter the playa.”

The National Weather Service said on Sunday that scattered and sometimes heavy rain showers were expected through the afternoon and overnight.

Some decided to leave the site early, walking approximately 5 miles (8 km) through the mud to the nearest highway, where the organizers were offering shuttle buses to Reno. People were advised not to walk at night.

No details were available on how many had decided to leave. Attendee Paul Reder told Reuters on Sunday that he knew of a few who had trudged out to the highway or defied officials and driven out. Those that remained were helping each other out by sharing food and water, he said.

“Everyone here seems in really good spirits,” said Reder, who has been going to the event for 22 years.

“There’s a general sense that this is going to end soon, the gates will open and we’ll all be on our way home.”

Reder said that despite the challenges he would not hesitate to return next year.

The gathering originated as a small function in 1986 on a San Francisco beach and is now also attended by celebrities and social media influencers.

(C) Reuters.

Investing.com — Here is your weekly Pro Recap of the past week’s biggest headlines in the electric vehicle space: Tesla’s continued legal troubles; US commits to EV advancement; and China EVs shine in August.

As always, InvestingPro users get EV headlines at lightning speed. Never miss another opportunity to secure an edge for your portfolio.

Tesla faces NHTSA scrutiny and legal challenges

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in July sent Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) a notice seeking additional information on modifications made to the EV giant‘s driver monitoring system, which is an integral part of the company’s autopilot software, as revealed by documents released on Tuesday.

NHTSA is specifically concerned about a software update that extends how long drivers can utilize it without requiring them to apply force to the steering wheel. US regulators are worried that this relaxation of controls could lead to drivers becoming inattentive and increase the risk of inadequate supervision of the autopilot system.

Adding to Tesla’s challenges, the company is set to face legal proceedings this month and in October regarding allegations that its Full Self-Driving (FSD) autopilot feature has been responsible for fatal accidents.

The initial trial, in California’s state court, involves a civil litigation case alleging that Tesla’s Autopilot system caused a Model 3 owned by Micah Lee to suddenly veer off a highway east of Los Angeles while traveling at 65 miles per hour. The alleged malfunction resulted in a collision with a palm tree, causing the vehicle to catch fire, and the incident transpired in a matter of seconds.

The second trial is scheduled for early October in a Florida state court and revolves around a 2019 accident north of Miami in which Stephen Banner’s Model 3 collided with the trailer of an 18-wheeler big-rig truck that had entered the road. The collision resulted in the vehicle’s roof being torn off, leading to Banner’s death. The lawsuit contends that Tesla’s autopilot failed to apply the brakes, steer, or take any measures to avoid the collision.

Tesla has denied responsibility for both accidents, attributing them to driver error and asserting that their Autopilot system is safe when monitored by human drivers.

As all this plays out, Tesla continues to wage its price war, announcing Friday that there will be further price cuts in China for its Model S and Model X EVs.

Also on Friday, the company revealed its redesigned Model 3 with extended range capabilities. The new Model 3 is Tesla’s first big change to its affordable-car lineup since the successful global introduction of the Model Y in 2020.

Tesla hasn’t yet provided a launch date for the new Model 3 in the US market. Right now, they’re offering more than $5,000 in discounts on some of the cars they already have in stock in the US.

US allocates $12 billion for EV advancement

During a briefing with journalists on Thursday, US Energy Secretary Jennifer Granholm announced that the US will allocate $12 billion in funds, accessible through grants and loans, to support automakers and their suppliers in retrofitting their facilities for the production of electric and other advanced vehicles.

This announcement comes at a time of tense negotiations between the United Auto Workers union and the three major auto companies concerning wages and benefits for workers involved in the production of EV batteries. However, Granholm clarified that it remains uncertain whether this funding will have any impact on these ongoing negotiations.

In addition to EVs, the funding may potentially encompass factories involved in the manufacturing of efficient hybrid vehicles, plug-in electric hybrids, plug-in electric drive vehicles, and even hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, as outlined by the Energy Department.

China’s EV makers shine in August

Rival EV makers in China reported impressive delivery numbers for August, demonstrating the EV market’s continued growth there.

Li Auto (NASDAQ:LI) achieved an all-time high in sales, with 34,914 vehicles delivered in August, marking a 2.3% increase from the previous record of 34,134 vehicles, set in the month prior. This remarkable figure represents a staggering 664% surge when compared with the same month last year.

Nio (NYSE:NIO) reported deliveries of 19,329 vehicles for August, though this represented a slight decrease of 5.5% compared with the previous month’s record of 20,462. Nonetheless, it reflected an impressive 81% increase when compared with August of the previous year. Nio’s delivery guidance for the third quarter, ranging from 55,000 to 57,000 electric vehicles, suggests that the company is currently exceeding the upper end of its delivery projections.

XPeng (NYSE:XPEV) achieved a significant milestone in August by delivering 13,690 vehicles, the highest number since June 2022. This marked a notable 43% increase compared with the same period a year earlier. Additionally, sales experienced strong growth of 24.4% compared with the 11,008 EVs delivered in July, marking the seventh consecutive month of sequential gains.

According to the China Passenger Car Association, as of August 27, retail sales of passenger new energy vehicles (NEVs) in China reached 538,000 units, indicating a 2% increase compared with the previous month, underscoring the ongoing expansion and competitiveness of the electric vehicle market in China.

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(C) Reuters

Investing.com — After Friday’s jobs report cemented expectations that the Federal Reserve will keep interest rates on hold later this month, the economic calendar will be lighter in the coming holiday-shortened week. Stocks go into September after notching up strong weekly gains last week, while data out of China will likely add to concerns over the outlook for the world’s number two economy. The Reserve Bank of Australia will likely stand pat for a third straight meeting and supply worries look set to underpin oil prices.

U.S. economic data, Fedspeak

Friday’s jobs report was the latest in a series of economic data indicating that the economy is heading for a so-called soft landing, adding to the view that the Fed is nearing the end of its rate hiking cycle.

Data in the week ahead is unlikely to do anything to alter this view significantly.

On Wednesday the Institute for Supply Management will release August data on service sector activity, with economists expecting it to soften slightly.

The same day the Fed will publish its Beige Book, a survey of economic activity across all the bank’s 12 districts.

Investors will also get the chance to hear from several Fed speakers during the coming week, including Dallas Fed President Lorie Logan, who speaks Wednesday followed a day later by appearances from New York Fed President John Williams, Governor Michelle Bowman, Governor Michael Barr and Chicago Fed President Austan Goolsbee.

Stocks kick off September

The Dow and the Nasdaq climbed 1.4% and 3.2% last week, respectively, posting their strongest weekly performances since July. The S&P 500 gained 2.5% for its best week since June.

Friday’s jobs report bolstered expectations for the Fed to pause rate hikes at its meeting later this month.

“The data makes the case for the Fed becoming more dovish as we head into the fall. If the end of tightening comes sooner than later, that could lead to a substantial rally in stocks,” Keith Buchanan, a portfolio manager at GLOBALT Investments in Atlanta told Reuters.

Interest rate futures suggest traders now see a 94% chance the U.S. central bank will keep interest rates unchanged at its Sept. 19-20 meeting, according to Investing.com’s Fed rate monitor tool.

The U.S. stock market will remain closed on Monday for the Labor Day holiday.

China data

Economic data out of China in the coming week is likely to indicate that the economic recovery in the world’s second largest economy remains fragile amid weak demand in key export markets and a deepening domestic property crisis which has added to downward pressure on growth.

The Caixin services PMI for August is due on Tuesday and is expected to show the expansion in the service sector slowing slightly last month.

Trade data on Thursday is forecast to show that exports and imports contracted again in August from a year earlier, albeit at a slower pace than in July.

Market watchers will also be looking to August CPI data on Saturday with consumer prices expected to tick higher after slipping into deflation territory in July.

Chinese authorities have rolled out a series of measures aimed at reviving the faltering economy, but many analysts see only a slim chance for more drastic stimulus amid concerns over mounting debt risks.

Oil surges on supply concerns

Oil prices surged to their highest level in more than seven months on Friday, snapping two weeks of losses amid concerns over the tightening supply outlook.

For the week, Brent rose about 4.8%, the most it has increased in a week since late July. Crude Oil WTI Futures advanced by 7.2%, their biggest weekly gain since March.

Saudi Arabia is widely expected to extend a voluntary 1 million barrel per day oil production cut into October, prolonging supply curbs engineered by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies, known collectively as OPEC+, to support prices.

“There is a realization the economy is not falling off the map, and signs that demand is near record highs,” said Price Futures Group analyst Phil Flynn. “People have to face the cold, hard reality that supplies are below average.”

The demand outlook in the U.S. remains robust, with commercial crude inventories declining in five of the most recent six weeks according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Reserve Bank of Australia decision

The RBA is expected to hold rates steady for a third straight meeting on Tuesday, after recent data pointing to a faster-than-anticipated cooling in inflation.

Rates are at an 11-year high of 4.1% after 400 basis points of increases since May 2022. Traders expect that to be the peak, after inflation unexpectedly eased to 4.9% year-on-year in July, the lowest rate since it peaked last December at 8.4%.

In addition, the most recent jobs report showed that the unemployment rate rose to 3.7% in July from 3.5% in the prior month, adding to expectations for the RBA to stand pat.

–Reuters contributed to this report

(C) Reuters. FILE PHOTO: A satellite view shows the center camp during the 2023 Burning Man festival, in Black Rock Desert, Nevada, U.S., August 28, 2023. Maxar Technologies/Handout via REUTERS/File Photo

(Reuters) -Tens of thousands of revelers attending the Burning Man festival in the Nevada desert have been asked to shelter in place and conserve food and water on Saturday after a rainstorm turned the site into mud.

Access to and from Black Rock City, the event’s site, was closed “for the remainder of the event,” organizers said in a statement on social media.

“Rain over the last 24 hours has created a situation that required a full stop of vehicle movement on the playa,” the U.S. Bureau of Land Management, the agency that manages the land on which the event takes place, said in a statement. “More rain is expected over the next few days and conditions are not expected to improve enough to allow vehicles to enter the playa,”

Thick, pasty mud surrounded Paul Reder’s RV on Saturday afternoon, as scattered patches of blue tried to break through the gray cloud cover above him.

“Fortunately we’re in a fairly big camp with a lot of supplies,” Reder told Reuters during a video call. “As a community, everybody’s sharing with each other.”

Reder, who has been attending the event for 22 years, said he expected it would take at least two days for the area to dry out. While he was prepared to ride it out, Reder said some attendees are leaving the site on foot and trekking to the nearest highway.

Black Rock City saw more than half an inch of rain drop overnight, organizers estimated.

More than 60,000 participants travel to and from the remote area in northwest Nevada every year, according to the event’s website, gathering in the temporary city to make art, dance, and enjoy community. Local media reported there were more than 70,000 “burners” in Black Rock City.

The festival gets its name from its culminating event, the burning of a large wooden structure called the Man on the penultimate night.

The gathering, which originated as a small function in 1986 on a San Francisco beach and is now also attended by celebrities and social media influencers, was scheduled to run from Aug. 27 until Sept. 4.

(C) Reuters. FILE PHOTO: Deputy head of Russia’s Security Council Dmitry Medvedev attends a meeting with officials and employees of the military industrial corporation “Scientific and Production Machine Building Association” in the town of Reutov in the Moscow region,

(Reuters) – Japan’s “militarisation” complicates the situation in the Asia-Pacific region, the deputy chair of the Russian Security Council and former President Dmitry Medvedev said on Sunday.

Russia and Japan have complex relations marked by decades of territorial dispute over a handful of small, Russian-held islands off Hokkaido that Moscow calls the southern Kurils but Japan claims as its Northern Territories.

The dispute over the area, which the Soviet Union seized in the final days of World War Two, has prevented Tokyo and Moscow from reaching a peace treaty formally ending hostilities.

“It is regrettable that the Japanese authorities are pursuing a course towards a new militarisation of the country,” the Russian TASS news agency quoted Medvedev as saying.

“Troop exercises are taking place near the Kuril Islands, which seriously complicates the situation in the Asia-Pacific region.”

Japan’s foreign ministry and Prime Minister’s Office could not immediately be reached for comment outside business hours.

Russia decided this year to declare Sept. 3 – the day after Japan’s surrender in World War Two – a “Day of Victory over Militaristic Japan”, spurring a protest from Tokyo.

Medvedev said Japan, with help from the United States, was expanding its military infrastructure and increasing its arms purchases.

Japan’s defence ministry on Thursday sought a record $53 billion in next fiscal year’s budget, part of its biggest military buildup since World War Two, aiming to double defence spending to 2% of gross domestic product by 2027, citing an increasingly assertive China and an unpredictable North Korea.